Mountain Murder Suspect Told Gardai He Was Guilty Day Before Arrest - But They Released Him

The suspected killer of grandmother Patricia O'Connor, whose remains were found in nine separate places in Wicklow, made admissions of guilt to gardai on Monday - but they released him.

The Irish Independent reports that the male suspect (32) told Rathfarnham gardai he had committed the crime, but because they believed at that point in the investigation that the human remains discovered were from a male, they let him go.

"What he was saying didn't correlate with what the investigation knew at the time, so gardaí had no reason to detain him," a source told the Independent.

The suspect was then arrested the following day after DNA results confirmed the body was female, and he is still being detained for questioning.

It's understood that the suspect is a relative of Ms O'Connor (61), and that a row broke out over the sale of a house.

He allegedly hit her over the head with a blunt object and buried her body in a shallow grave in Wicklow, but 24 hours later returned with a hacksaw to dismember her body.

Her remains were scattered in the mountains, some in plastic bags.

10 separate crime scenes have been set up as part of the ongoing investigation.